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Celebrating Marcus Merriman (1940-2006)

02/08/2007 12:07:05

The History Department is arranging a half-day colloquium to celebrate the life and work of Marcus Merriman, senior lecturer in History and one of the longest-serving members of the University, who died last year.

The colloquium will be held –appropriately – in the recently renamed ‘Marcus Merriman Lecture Theatre’ on Wednesday 21 March from 2.00-5.30 p.m.Speakers will include Emeritus Professor Michael Heale, formerly head of History at Lancaster, and Dr Sandy Grant, who will pay tribute to Marcus as a teacher and scholar, and three leading experts in Marcus’ field of research specialism, the life and times of Mary Queen of Scots: Professor Michael Lynch (Edinburgh), Dr Jenny Wormald (Oxford and Edinburgh) and Professor Roger Mason (St Andrews).

Marcus joined the university at its founding in 1964 as a temporary assistant lecturer in History, taking tutorials for the professor and two lecturers who then constituted the department. This was before the Bailrigg campus was ready, and teaching took place in a former warehouse in St. Leonardsgate. But so thrilled was Marcus at participating in the creation of a new university, and such was his forceful impact, that his appointment was quickly made permanent, to the particular satisfaction of the Vice-Chancellor, Charles Carter. In 1966 the department moved to the muddy building site at Bailrigg.